The blue brothers

[Jeroen Ottens]

Hi,

It has been a while since I posted a completed model here. And today I have two models, both inspired by models from a well-known supercar manufacturer whose name I am not allowed to mention.

First of all I have the long overdue blue supercar that I developed together with Marco van Overbeeke:

I am pleased to say that this model is now finally finished. As mentioned before this model has the following features:

• Independent suspension on all wheels
• A V10 fake engine in the front
• 4 wheel drive
• A working steering wheel
• A 4 speed sequential gearbox, operated with flappy pedals next to the steeringwheel
• A D-N-R switch in the center console
• openable doors, hood and trunk
• 4 wheel steering

The last feature is the most interesting one IMHO, because the steeringmode depends on the gear that you are in. In first gear the wheels steer in opposite direction, giving you the smallest cornering radius. When in fourth gear the wheels steer in the same direction, making switching lanes at high speed easier. And when in reverse only the front wheels steer.

As a first for me, I also made the bodywork detachable from the chassis:

You'll have to remove a few pins and then the whole bodywork can be taken off.

The second car I'd like to show is a commissioned model. Again inspired by an existing supercar. I've called it the PF Tribute since it features a lot of PF elements (3 M-motors, 3 switches, 1 servomotor, 1 IR receiver, 1 IR remote, 1 batterybox and 2 extension wires).

The design is quite heavy on system elements (especially the back is almost completely made with systembricks:

I found this was the only way to capture the lines of the original car this was inspired on.

As you can imagine this car is also packed with (motorized) features:

• Independent suspension on all wheels
• A V10 fake engine in the back
• A working steering wheel
• A 8-speed sequential gearbox, operated with electrical flappy pedals next to the steeringwheel
• A D-N-R switch in the center console
• Openable doors and hood
• Adjustable ride height on the front suspension (remote controlled)
• A convertible roof (remote controlled)

The flappy pedals operate a switch for the servomotor that controls the gearselector. I wanted to see if such a setup was easier to design and use than a more convential manual setup. In the end it doesn't really matter much I think. It is a bit easier in design because you don't have to put the gear selector close to the steeringwheel. But the return-to-center mechanism on the switch requires a bit more force than I would have liked. Also I removed the 8->1 gear block that I usually put in my gearboxes because the servomotor will otherwise put a lot of strain on the gear selector mechanism.

But the most interesting feature I think is the roof mechanism. It is remote controlled, using only one channel. I have made a short video to show how it works:

https://youtu.be/oy2zIEsv410

I quite quickly had imagined a way to make the different components work in the right sequence, but it has taken a lot of design iterations to make it work smoothly and reliably.

I am happy to say that this time the commission was non-exclusive, which gives me the right to make and sell instructions. So I made a commercial version of this model as well, with left hand drive, a white interior and all really rare dark blue parts are now black instead.

Partslists for both models are available on Rebrickable. Here is the link to the partslist of Il Toro Azzuro and here is the link to the partslist of the PF Tribute.

Leg godt,

Jeroen

[bonox]

oh wow 

 

Given the title i was expecting something else, but i'm really glad that neither of them have a 440 cubic inch plant. I'm loving the body on frame modular style more and more and well sir - they're just stunning.

[LvdH]

Both are absolutely fantastic models. I think I prefer the dark blue one, simply for the clean looks. I’ll definitely build it (those?) when the budget allows it

[OneMoreRobot]

Excellent work, thanks for sharing. ?

[T Lego]

Congratulations on finishing both of these exelent cars. 

The Dark blue one is my favorite. The roof mechanism is very ingenious, the lines flow very smoothly and I love how that interior pops against the darker exterior! Great usage of the fence part and slopes. I have one minor complaint regarding the rear fender which doesn't sit very thight around the wheel, which IMO gives the side view a bit of an awkward look.

Btw, would you mind uploading some more pictures? I would love to see more of the interior and that electric paddle shifting system 

Incredible models

[ozacek]

2 hours ago, Jeroen Ottens said:

As a first for me, I also made the bodywork detachable from the chassis

That's great!! Personally I find that's one of the most desirable feature of a big car, and one most often missing.

[Gray Gear]

Is there really a problem when you tell people the name of the car you built a model of? Did someone in  this community get in  trouble by doing so before? I dont get it.

[KD123]

Both cars are awesome Jeroen.  I can watch the roof mechanism go up and down all day. ? Thanks for sharing two amazing creations.  

[br0ken4life]

OMG so many amazing MOC’s dropping you guys are breaking my piggy bank! Love the first car in light blue. Will you be selling instructions? Never mind got them thank you!

Edited November 10, 2019 by br0ken4life

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

10 hours ago, bonox said:

Given the title i was expecting something else, but i'm really glad that neither of them have a 440 cubic inch plant. I'm loving the body on frame modular style more and more and well sir - they're just stunning.

I agree, I was expecting a sort of black and white police car but what I've found is totally cool.

The first car is the best in my opinion, and the function about the steering mode is amazing (same sides, opposite side and only front in reverse mode)!

 

[brunojj1]

@Jeroen Ottens: It´s way too much of political correctness, just my opinion. As well I find it´s a pity with the too short presentation of 2 different supercars in one topic which are both designed in a brilliant way. We all would appreciate to see more pictues from all angles, learn about the Technical details. Moreover I think it´s not a sin to post direct links to the instructions here (although taking the "penalty risk" of not being frontpaged). You are a professional designer who bravely has taken more risk than anybody, nothing to be ashamed of.

So let´s talk about the Lamborghini Miura Concept. There was a WIP topic for this car earlier. The detachable bodywork is a dream, especially considering the limitations you´ve had in the dark azure color! How far is the distance between the unfinished prototype and the result you´re showing us today?

Lamborghini Gallardo in dark blue: the front looks very smooth and authentic. The rear part consisting of the system plates probably can´t be done better due to the parts range available in this color. The car would look even better with the Bugatti wheels. Now the roof mechanism – magnificent work, hats off! I couldn´t immagine something like this is possible at all. Then I´m really curious about the gearbox/servo shifter. Going to get the instructions immediately to find out.

[Jeroen Ottens]

10 hours ago, Gray Gear said:

Is there really a problem when you tell people the name of the car you built a model of? Did someone in  this community get in  trouble by doing so before? I dont get it.

See below

8 hours ago, KD123 said:

Both cars are awesome Jeroen.  I can watch the roof mechanism go up and down all day. ? Thanks for sharing two amazing creations.  

Thanks, that roof mechanism has given me quite a headache to get it sequenced and operated so smoothly. I am really stoked with the end-result TBH.

6 minutes ago, brunojj1 said:

@Jeroen Ottens: It´s way too much of political correctness, just my opinion. As well I find it´s a pity with the too short presentation of 2 different supercars in one topic which are both designed in a brilliant way. We all would appreciate to see more pictues from all angles, learn about the Technical details. Moreover I think it´s not a sin to post direct links to the instructions here (although taking the "penalty risk" of not being frontpaged). You are a professional designer who bravely has taken more risk than anybody, nothing to be ashamed of.

So let´s talk about the Lamborghini Miura Concept. There was a WIP topic for this car earlier. The detachable bodywork is a dream, especially considering the limitations you´ve had in the dark azure color! How far is the distance between the unfinished prototype and the result you´re showing us today?

Lamborghini Gallardo in dark blue: the front looks very smooth and authentic. The rear part consisting of the system plates probably can´t be done better due to the parts range available in this color. The car would look even better with the Bugatti wheels. Now the roof mechanism – magnificent work, hats off! I couldn´t immagine something like this is possible at all. Then I´m really curious about the gearbox/servo shifter. Going to get the instructions immediately to find out.

The reason I am in this position is because of the post I made a couple of months ago about the Chinese IP thieves. One remark I got back was that we usually are not that clean with IP rules ourselves. So I thought, why not ask for permission? A bit naïve maybe, but I proposed to put a similar disclaimer on my site as I have for LEGO to the real car manufacturer. But their legal department made it very clear that I was not allowed to use their brand and names. So I'll abide to that and I will not confirm that you are right with guessing which cars were the inspiration .

The short presentations have more to do with the time I currently have available to work on my LEGO business. Rebuilding a house is a bit more time consuming than I hoped for. I'll see if I have some more photos that I have lying around.

The detachable bodywork was a wish I already had for a long time, so I am happy I finally had a model that offered the opportunity. I felt it helped in the designprocess as well, since it decoupled chassis developments from bodywork developments.

The difference between the development version and this one is not that big. I mainly optimized the design for the use of the parts of the Chiron (The Chiron gives you 73% of the parts for Il Toro Azzuro and only 47% of the parts for the PF Tribute which wasn't optimized for that). I haven't checked how much of the parts of the Chiron are used if you'd build both cars...

 

To all, thanks for the positive comments. That is appreciated.

[Kronos987]

Finally!!! I have a tab open on my phone from the WIP of the light blue one! I’ve been waiting for this since I first saw it. Well done as always! I can’t wait to build this

[Meatman]

Those are nice cars. If you're planning on selling instructions, it would probably be a good idea to make videos showing the functions. I would like top see a video before committing to buy.

[MajklSpajkl]

That convertible roof is a total witchcraft!  Fantastic achievement and unimaginable mechanism for me.

[Jeroen Ottens]

On 11/10/2019 at 8:07 PM, Meatman said:

Those are nice cars. If you're planning on selling instructions, it would probably be a good idea to make videos showing the functions. I would like top see a video before committing to buy.

Instructions are available on my website already ;)
At the moment I do not have the time to make a video unfortunately. The PF Tribute I do not have anymore, so I won't be making anything more than is already shown. Il Toro Azzurro is still in one piece in my workplace, so maybe I'll get around to make a short video of that.

9 hours ago, MajklSpajkl said:

That convertible roof is a total witchcraft!  Fantastic achievement and unimaginable mechanism for me.

Thanks. I wasn't entirely sure that I would be able to pull this one off to be honest. The first time I saw it in action on the real car I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach. But once I started in earnest on the design I had the first prototype mechanism in place within a few weeks. So I was quite chuffed at that point . But getting it to operate smoothly and reliably (and designing the rest of the car around it) in the end took over 6 months.

[1gor]

I agree with @MajklSpajkl, (until he says 'tvornica klobukov skofja loka'); now I'm curious how would Toro Azzuro look in yellow. @Jeroen OttensOttens really great MOCs, specially Toro Azzuro

[Toastie]

On 11/10/2019 at 10:37 AM, Jeroen Ottens said:

So I'll abide to that and I will not confirm that you are right with guessing which cars were the inspiration

Holy guacamoly, man, their legal department. But I can see it. No - I can't. Not with having in mind what you have accomplished for them - TLG that is. I cannot. But I do - sort of ...

What I love so much is that it is with a probability of 1 (so rare - or better improbable- in the real world - and particularly in (quantum) mechanics) that folks like @brunojj1 and many others here >will< figure it out in zero time (another very improbable thing in ... ach - forget it).

Which renders the hole thing beautifully bizarre ... I love it.

Most beautiful cars(!), not from this planet building techniques(!), and you are always obeying to the laws of the Gods of the Bricks, T, L and G. Well sort of ...

Congratulations!

Best
Thorsten

 

   

[MajklSpajkl]

9 hours ago, I_Igor said:

I agree with @MajklSpajkl, (until he says 'tvornica klobukov skofja loka')

Does ' Konobar, dajte još jedan kozarac, molim' sounds better? 

@Jeroen Ottens So the mechanism for the roof is actually a replica of the real thing??? Or does the real car have more motors and help of some electronics to perform the movement?

[MangaNOID]

that roof mechanism is VERY NICE!

It would be nice to see a stripped down version of that in action i.e. no car around it ... Not that there is anything wrong with the car of course  its lovely!   But just that the roof action is sublime 

[Jeroen Ottens]

 

8 hours ago, Toastie said:

Holy guacamoly, man, their legal department. But I can see it. No - I can't. Not with having in mind what you have accomplished for them - TLG that is. I cannot. But I do - sort of ...

What I love so much is that it is with a probability of 1 (so rare - or better improbable- in the real world - and particularly in (quantum) mechanics) that folks like @brunojj1 and many others here >will< figure it out in zero time (another very improbable thing in ... ach - forget it).

Which renders the hole thing beautifully bizarre ... I love it.

Most beautiful cars(!), not from this planet building techniques(!), and you are always obeying to the laws of the Gods of the Bricks, T, L and G. Well sort of ...

Congratulations!

Best
Thorsten

 

   

, and thanks man

54 minutes ago, MajklSpajkl said:

Does ' Konobar, dajte još jedan kozarac, molim' sounds better? 

@Jeroen Ottens So the mechanism for the roof is actually a replica of the real thing??? Or does the real car have more motors and help of some electronics to perform the movement?

The movements are a replica of the real thing:
- The decklid moves backwards, then upwards and tilts open
- The roof comes up and folds open with the tailends sticking upwards
- The decklid comes down again, slides forward and moves down a little to close flush with the surface
- The tailends of the roof tilt down

I think that in the real car three motors are used instead of two. The tailends of the roof are motorized separately I think. The decklid has some more complicated 4-link mechanism to achieve the movements than I use. But other than that it is pretty similar .

[LvdH]

I’m already collecting parts for the PF Tribute - hope to have them all (including rare ones you changed to black) by the end of the month. I’ll provide some pictures and a little overview of the functions. I must say, looking through the instructions, that it exceeded all my expectations. 

[Ivan_M]

I had an unique opportunity to make instructions for both cars so I fell quite familar with them, but the video of the roof still blown me away, that is some neat engeneering!

[LvdH]

99% done. I forgot to order a few dark blue parts for the front. I managed to get my hands on a bunch of rare dark blue parts (6536, 42003, 32039 and the original ribbed hose).
The gearbox is amazing and so much quicker than I expected. Imo near flawless, except for the steering column which is a bit fragile. Ideally you want very old and worn PF switches for this model, as they are vital to the functionality and reduce friction. 

The roof is truly magic but a pain to build. There are several axles that must be aligned perfectly or the sequence won't work. Also don't test any of the roof functions, no matter how tempting it may be, as it will mess up the alignment. 

Instructions were fine, but a bit unclear sometimes. I have no idea where the seats go. It isn't shown clearly at all, and the passenger seat doesn't fit the way I think it's supposed to. 

I also spotted two mistakes. The first:

The pin won't fit. It should be moved one stud to the right and requires a small mod. 

And the other, the mirrors for the left door are made while building the right door and vice versa. That one wasn't a big issue.  

 

[Appie]

9 hours ago, LvdH said:

Ideally you want very old and worn PF switches for this model, as they are vital to the functionality and reduce friction. 

You can "break-in" brand new PF switches to a similar level of wear. Just use the switch like 50-100 times in a minute.